[Doug Metz]

I would first delete the render files throughout the library to bring down the file size, then definitely zip. I don’t have experience with iDrive specifically, but those libraries are databases with a bunch of small files and links, and I’m risk averse.

I back up to HDD (stored offsite) and LTO for redundancy, but not many have that luxury.

[Doug Metz]

One other thing you could try – create a new user account, log into that one, and see if the issue persists. That would let you know if it’s a system-wide thing or not.

[Doug Metz]

“Right now TRT is 15 minutes. Aiming for 30 min. External USB3.1 drive is 14TB. Codec is Apple Pro Res which should have smaller file sizes than H.264”

ProRes is typically quite a bit larger than H264, but that depends on the bitrate for the H264 files. I’m going to assume that your external 14TB drive is HDD and not SSD, so you should check that the disk’s format is correct. Partition map should be GUID (device level), and volume format should be HFS+ for spinning disks (APFS for SSDs). You can check this with Disk Utility – show all devices in the upper left. If the format isn’t correct, you’ll need to back up everything on that drive and then wipe it / reformat.

In any case, you’ve got plenty of space available, just need to verify a few things first.

[Doug Metz]

Looks like OP is talking about a Zoom field recorder, not the app in this case. I’ve got an older H4 that I still use from time to time, and it would get stubborn about changing sample rates. A firmware update seemed to stabilize it for the most part. It would switch itself to 96kHz, so I check it every time now (which is maybe once a year).

[Doug Metz]

Could be the audio I/O changing while the app is running.

Can you regain control if you quit and relaunch the app? I would try this – first verify the issue occurs if only one A/V app is running. Then quit, relaunch, and try playback again without the phones. This is just a troubleshooting step to try and narrow down the triggering factor.

[Doug Metz]

I use Carbon Copy Cloner for this.

Keep in mind that Apple’s last few OS’s do not allow making a bootable clone, but the clone can still be used with Migration Assistant on a clean OS install.

https://bombich.com/

bombich.com

Mac Backup Software | Carbon Copy Cloner | Bombich Software

Mac Backup Software | Carbon Copy Cloner | Bombich Software

[Doug Metz]

You’re thinking of SendToX, which is what I use for that conversion.

[Doug Metz]

Yeah, found this out this morning. I don’t typically use tracking in a text wrapper (for me it’s CoreMelt or Motion/built-in) so I’m going to roll with it, but definitely sent FCP feedback to Apple about it – there’s an article on FX Factory’s site about the issue:

https://fxfactory.com/news/finalcutpro-10.6.9-skip-the-update/

[Doug Metz]

I’m running Ventura 13.5.2 (current) with FCP 10.6.9 with no problem.

Plugins I use: Waves, FXFactory, CoreMelt, motionVFX, a bunch I made myself in Motion, and a few stragglers from various known forum members. One bad experience with PixelFilmStudios put them on my blacklist. I do get an occasional crash from the CoreMelt plugs that aren’t ARM native yet (most are), since my primary rig is an M2 Studio, but even those are rare and harmless.

Go through your plugins and make sure they’re up to date. Don’t upgrade in the middle of a project. Clone your boot drive and give it a whirl, just remember that any library you open will be modified for the new version, so maybe make a copy of one library and open the copy while you test.

EDIT: there’s also a new Pro Video Formats update so if you update FCP, get the new format update (System settings / General / SW Update) to go with it.

[Doug Metz]

Hey Roger,

No need to compress, you can mix source video sizes / frame rates / etc – unless there’s some extenuating circumstance you didn’t mention…